Objective: The Foundry has a rich history dating back more than a century. Once the former manufacturing campus of Brown & Sharpe, the 13 brick buildings located on 26 acres at the edge of downtown Providence, Rhode Island have been restored into a mixed-use complex. In the middle of the complex is the Sharpe Building at the Foundry, which served as a mill during the building’s manufacturing years. The goal for the renovation of the 157,500-square-foot, six-story building was to develop 196 loft-style luxury residences. Placed on the National Register of Historic Places in 2003, the Sharpe Building required a renovation that upgraded the functionality of the building while maintaining the historic design.

Work Completed: The LG Multi V IV VRF heat recovery system was installed. Using LG’s variable refrigerant flow (VRF) systems would preserve the architectural integrity of the historic building, while addressing space considerations by running small refrigerant lines throughout the building without using bulky ductwork. In addition to the small refrigerant lines and compact equipment, the LG Multi V IV does not require a large mechanical room. In turn, the Sharpe Building was able to repurpose that space for amenities for the residents including a gym and a theater. On a large portion of the roof that would have been occupied by a conventional system, the Sharpe building created an outdoor space overlooking downtown Providence for the residents.

By using individual zones, the LG Multi V IV systems only engage when there is enough demand, and then balance the load requirements across all spaces to use energy more efficiently. The system provides further energy efficiency through the heat recovery feature as heated return air is redistributed to the zones that need it, rather than heating new air.